2016 Korea National League
# 2016 Korea National League

The 2016 Korea National League, also known as the Incheon International Airport National League 2016 due to the sponsorship of Incheon International Airport, was the 14th season of the Korea National League, the third tier of South Korea's football league system. Each of the ten clubs played three times against all other clubs in the regular season, and the top four clubs of the regular season qualified for post-season playoffs.

Hyundai Mipo Dockyard won their seventh league title after winning the two-legged final, but they dissolved their football club after the end of the season due to financial difficulties. Yongin City also dissolved their football club after being disappointed with poor results of the club.

Gangneung City goalkeeper Park Chung-hyo became the first player to win the MVP award without the league title.

## Teams

| Team | Location | Stadium |
| - | - | - |
| Busan Transportation Corporation | Busan | Busan Gudeok Stadium |
| Changwon City | Changwon | Changwon Football Center |
| Cheonan City | Cheonan | Cheonan Stadium |
| Daejeon Korail | Daejeon | Daejeon Hanbat Stadium |
| Gangneung City | Gangneung | Gangneung Stadium |
| Gimhae City | Gimhae | Gimhae Stadium |
| Gyeongju KHNP | Gyeongju | Gyeongju Civic Stadium |
| Hyundai Mipo Dockyard | Ulsan | Ulsan Stadium |
| Mokpo City | Mokpo | Mokpo International Football Center |
| Yongin City | Yongin | Yongin Football Center |

## Regular season

### League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Gangneung City | 27 | 16 | 8 | 3 | 33 | 17 | +16 | 56 | Qualification for the playoffs final |
| 2 | Hyundai Mipo Dockyard | 27 | 13 | 5 | 9 | 35 | 31 | +4 | 44 | Qualification for the playoffs semi-final |
| 3 | Gyeongju KHNP | 27 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 43 | 31 | +12 | 42 | Qualification for the playoffs first round |
| 4 | Changwon City | 27 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 33 | 29 | +4 | 39 | Qualification for the playoffs first round |
| 5 | Cheonan City | 27 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 34 | 31 | +3 | 39 | |
| 6 | Gimhae City | 27 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 37 | 34 | +3 | 34 | |
| 7 | Daejeon Korail | 27 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 33 | 41 | −8 | 34 | |
| 8 | Busan Transportation Corporation | 27 | 6 | 10 | 11 | 26 | 36 | −10 | 28 | |
| 9 | Mokpo City | 27 | 6 | 9 | 12 | 20 | 26 | −6 | 27 | |
| 10 | Yongin City | 27 | 4 | 7 | 16 | 30 | 48 | −18 | 19 | |

### Positions by matchday

| Team ╲ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Gangneung City | 6 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Ulsan Hyundai Mipo Dolphin | 9 | 4 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Gyeongju KHNP | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Changwon City | 6 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 |
| Cheonan City | 4 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 5 |
| Gimhae City | 2 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 |
| Daejeon Korail | 4 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| Busan Transportation Corporation | 9 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Mokpo City | 2 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Yongin City | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |

## Championship playoffs

| First round | First round | First round | Semi-final | Semi-final | Semi-final | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | | | 2 | Hyundai Mipo Dockyard | 1 | | | | | |
| | | | 1R | Gyeongju KHNP | 1 | | | | | |
| 3 | Gyeongju KHNP | 2 | 1R | Gyeongju KHNP | 1 | | | | | |
| 4 | Changwon City | 0 | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Changwon City | 0 | | | | SF | Hyundai Mipo Dockyard | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| | | | | | | 1 | Gangneung City | 0 | 1 | 1 |

* ↑ Hyundai Mipo Dockyard advanced to the final due to a higher ranking in the regular season.
